Ladies! Stop Arguing About Work/Life Balance and Work Together to Change the Workplace

Women’s leadership, or not, is the hottest topic of the moment, thanks to Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg’s terrific new book Lean In. It prompted CNN.com to ask me to write this commentary.

They changed my title and last line (I wrote “Leaning In together…” which I thought more apropos than “Striving together…”). And they edited out my fun opening reference to the grey umbrella party favors with the Bloomberg logo that were presented to each guest as we exited into the snowy night, and a few other fun details of the AAA list Lean In launch party. Start reading here, click to the full article on CNN.com, and share your comments here and there (tweets and reposts will be appreciate too):

(CNN) — At the launch party for Facebook executive Sheryl Sandberg’s controversial new book, “Lean In,” New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg complained only half jokingly that the book — which hit Amazon.com’s best seller list well ahead of its March 11 release — is doing way better than his book did. Then he introduced Arianna Huffington, who introduced the woman of the moment.

And this is unquestionably a moment.

Its significance can be measured by the roiling controversy touched off in recent weeks over the role and place of women in society. (If estrogen were combustible, smoke detectors would be screeching.) More specifically: How women navigate life as they inch their way toward a fair and equal share of roles in a still male-dominated workplace and in the home space.

Sandberg and two other alpha females — Yahoo! CEO Marissa Mayer, and Princeton professor and former top State Department official Anne-Marie Slaughter — have taken turns at the center of the debate, Mayer recently when she declared an end to employee flextime in favor of face time, angering many women (and men), who considered the move a step back.

Slaughter, in an Atlantic article last year, wrote of backing away from her State Department job over mom-guilt and then criticized Sandberg for signaling in her popular video talks “more than a note of reproach” to such a retreat, while she encouraged women to stay in the game, come what may.

3 Responses to Ladies! Stop Arguing About Work/Life Balance and Work Together to Change the Workplace

Gloria, great interview; I agree with you we have to make choices and sacrifices nobody can have it all because once you reach that point of “I have it all” there is something else to accomplish. I featured Donna Hamlin CEO, Intrabond Capital U.S Inc on Adventures of a Working Woman and I just love how she has/or is trying to integrate her work and family life. In her article she writes “Gary loves architecture. I love interior design. One daughter loves cooking. Another loves to play violin and our youngest loves fashion. Together, we found an historic barn which we are renovating with a plan to open a country store and restaurant” Does she have it all? Probably not; there is always the next stage or chapter in one’s life.

Great example, Afi! There are so many ways to keep women moving forward. I often tell young women to be conscious and intentional in their choices but not to obsess over them. They can always unchoose and do something different for a while.

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